Padres Rumors: Insider Links Friars to All-Star Catcher as Trade Deadline Target
The Padres are at a crossroads in the season. After losing three of four to the Phillies this weekend, the front office needs to decide whether to try and add to a club that is six games under .500, 10.5 games behind the Dodgers for the NL West division lead, and 8 games back of a Wild Card spot...
...or sell off some assets who are primed to become free agents and reconfigure for next season.
For the sake of this editorial, let's assume they're still in on this season and want to add to the roster for the final two months of the regular season. Over at The Athletic, former MLB GM Jim Bowden and Padres beat writer Dennis Lin discussed needs for the team heading toward the deadline.
Bowden looked far and wide across the league to identify any ways AJ Preller could upgrade the 26-man roster. Down into the nitty gritty of his rant, the scribe feels an enhancement at catcher could prove to be helpful.
I wouldn’t be as concerned about controllable targets as much as how to add players who could get them into the playoffs this year. Once you’re in, anything can happen. I would target position players including … Travis d’Arnaud of the Braves.
d'Arnaud became the backup backstop in Atlanta this season after the Braves acquired All-Star catcher Sean Murphy this past winter. When healthy, d'Arnaud has been a quality hitter at the big league level. He was also named to the NL All-Star team for the first time in his career just one season ago. But he hardly feels like enough of a difference maker for this Padres ballclub.
One way he could be a marked improvement at catcher over Gary Sanchez is with his game calling, which has graded out much higher than Sanchez in their careers. Better game calling could equal fewer bullpen blowups, but it feels like we're just throwing mud at a wall in this trade scenario to see what sticks.
More ideal trade targets suggested by Bowden are of the reliever variety where he suggests the Padres see what the Royals are asking for RHP Scott Barlow or what the Mets would want for David Robertson.
